Ratings for Sunday night's debut of the sixth installment of The Apprentice were terrible. There were 600,000 fewer viewers than last year, though there was a slight increase in the coveted 18- to 49-year-old demographic, Reuters says, citing data from Nielsen Media Research.
This underscores the declining popularity of the show and the risks of reality television. Unlike scripted shows, producers usually can't count on a big payday in the syndication market. Does anyone really want to see Joe Millionaire again?
The Apprentice wasn't supposed to be a star vehicle for Donald Trump. It just worked out that way much to the delight of NBC and its corporate masters at the General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE). Efforts to expand the show with Martha Stewart were a dismal failure, so everyone is stuck with the Donald. He quite simply has worn out his welcome atop the pop culture zeitgeist. The fight he's had with Rosie O'Donnell hasn't helped the show's ratings either
Trump was the only thing that NBC had going for a while but that's no longer the case thanks to hits like The Office and Deal or No Deal. It's now theoretically possible for NBC head Jeff Zucker and NBC Universal CEO Robert Wright to summon the chairman of Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. (Nasdaq:TRMP) to their board room and you know...
New 'Twilight' movie dominates weekend box office 
Before the bell: Stock futures higher as gold sets another record, dollar slumps
Entrepreneur's Journal: Want to get a piece of the Buffett/Goldman honeypot?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-09-2007 @ 10:11PM
fred goynes said...
The latest Apprentice was great. Fast and peppy. No nonsense. To the point. I will be watching every episode if they are anything close to last Sunday's.
1-09-2007 @ 10:24PM
vc said...
I think trump's popularity took a hit after he decided to join Rosie in this latest mudslinging match.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNm0p01Cn3A
1-10-2007 @ 7:07AM
sarah gilbert said...
I, too, yawned my way through this episode. IMO, the show is much-worsened since Trump lost his faithful sidekick, Carolyn. hmmm... employees have *real* work to do, Donald?
1-10-2007 @ 8:25AM
DT said...
Hey Donald,
If you want to garner more ratings, why don't you sleep in a tent in LA.
1-10-2007 @ 8:25AM
Michael Schneider said...
The new Apprentice has tough competition this year against Desperate Housewives as reviewers noted before the showing. It does replay each week though so the replay ratings may also be important.
1-10-2007 @ 9:43AM
Jonathan Berr said...
"Desperate Housewives" is speeding up the show's decline. I don't know if there is anything that Mark Burnett can do with the show that hasn't already been done.
1-10-2007 @ 9:36AM
Lynn OK said...
This new show was degrading for all, the players and viewers. The task was stupid! My son or daughter's sports teams put on a better car wash than that. Give them real coporate tasks. Don't prove to the world that these corporate geeks really cannot do real roll up your sleves work. We all KNOW this! Tents? Please. They are wusses from the get go! Trump has gotten too wrapped up in the media and should go back to his own business.
1-10-2007 @ 11:41AM
Rena said...
Just think of it as a human relations workshop -- it's most interesting in that way!
1-10-2007 @ 12:07PM
Lee R said...
Top executives with grammar such as, " he should have gave and he should have went" ? YUK
1-10-2007 @ 4:44PM
Edgar said...
Show was horrible. Worthless Task. Two Trumps too many. His daughter has nothing to add but the name. Will countinue to watch to see how bad it gets.